Osprey Eagle 5.5, Advice needed please

[swesandy]

Hi All

Generally new to RIBs a friend of mine has recently bought a Osprey Eagle 5.5 and suzuki DT115 engine from ebay but has changed his mind and offered it to me for £1600.00.

Is this a good buy and what problems should i be looking for ? I was thinking of having it as a project. The original seller said the tubes would need replacing, how much would this cost and would it be financially viable considering what it would be worth afterwards or could they be cleaned up and repaired.

All advice and help greatly appreciated

I have copied the original pictures and listing below:

[COLOR="rgb(65, 105, 225)"]Osprey Eagle 5.5 Deep V hull Rigid inflatable

I have owned this boat for 4 years however it is now time to move on due to work & life commitments i don't get much chance to use it any more
i was intending to give the boat a complete overhaul and then list it, however i have thought that before i do I would list it to see if anyone would be interested in a low cost little tinkering project.

The tubes need work but they do hold air for a week or so, as a short term fix they could be painted with special paint and the seams can be re-taped and glued but ultimately they will need replacing i was quoted £1700 for this, however with new tubes the rib is propelled into a different price league
the hull is solid with age related scuffs etc.. and a bit of staining underneath this would polish out

It has 2 passenger seats these need better cushions/ recovering and the drivers seat would benefit from a new cover however theses seats can be removed if required and the original gas rack (not shown ) can be re fitted

The trailer has good tyres all round , but the brake shoes were removed as they had corroded , the bearings and drums are sound just a set of shoes would be required to make it "braked" again.it never bothered because i only live 5 miles from the slipway and towed it with a 4x4 it may need a few new "U bolts" but these are not expensive and are easily replaced, one of the guide wheels is missing this does not affect the operation of the trailer.

if i get the right offer i will throw in the following:
Chart plotter (ray marine)+ St georges channel chart (£90alone)
DSC short wave radio (linked to sat nav)
plastic Sea containers (flares etc...)

Engine Suzuki DT115 2 stroke 115 hp I had some work done 2 years ago by "John Griffiths Outboards" it runs well but can overheat when pushed to its limits it has done this to me twice in 4 years and to be fair i was pushing it 4500 revs+ , slowing down rectifies the situation. it has had the following works done by John
new cylinder head gasket
new water pump
new pressure relief valve
gear box oil change
The boat comes with the following
Oars
Compass
Anchor
Depth meter (raytheon) (Sealink to chartplotter)
trailer board
Navigation lamps
SW radio (broken can be repaired)
satellite Ariel (gps)
trailer
recent steering gear (teleflex)
gas bottle rack (optional)
anti slip flooring (fibreglass /crushed slate)
tube pump
Flushing muffs (headphones)

If it achieves a decent price i will throw in the following
Chart plotter (ray marine)
DSC short wave radio (linked to sat nav)
plastic Sea containers (flares etc...)
In short the boat is being offered in a warts and all condition with nothing hidden, if you are interested feel free to ask questions
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[Nos4r2]

Sounds like a bit of a project. Not a bad buy as log as the hull is ok and the motor hasn't been damaged by the overheats.

Personally I'd buy it , clean it, sort the motor issue (do a compression check on it if it's overheated before you buy it) and use it. The tubes will look 1000 times better after a good going over with TFR.

[swesandy]

Originally Posted by Nos4r2

Sounds like a bit of a project. Not a bad buy as log as the hull is ok and the motor hasn't been damaged by the overheats.

Personally I'd buy it , clean it, sort the motor issue (do a compression check on it if it's overheated before you buy it) and use it. The tubes will look 1000 times better after a good going over with TFR.

Hi

Thanks for the advice

Are the tubes repairable to stop the leak or would they need replacing also what is TFR and where can you get it.

How would you rate the Opsrey eagle and what are its capabilities?

What is the most likely cause over the engine overheats?

Is it worth the cost of repair and would i see a return getting it retubed?

Thanks in advance

Andrew

[Nos4r2]

Originally Posted by swesandy

Hi

Thanks for the advice

Are the tubes repairable to stop the leak or would they need replacing also what is TFR and where can you get it.

Maybe, but it's usable if they take a week to go down. It might even just be valves. I'd personally try and fix them rather than retube.
At £1600, you'd get most if not all of your money back by selling it on Ebay again as a separate boat/trailer/engine.

Originally Posted by swesandy

How would you rate the Opsrey eagle and what are its capabilities?

Ospreys almost have a cult following. Not a bad boat at all.

Originally Posted by swesandy

What is the most likely cause over the engine overheats?

Depends if it was alarming or actually overheating. Does the paint on the cylinders/head look cooked?
Could be a faulty temp sender,water pump, blocked waterways,head gasket, timing incorrect, wrong plugs, carb settings. You NEED to do a compression check before buying it-make sure they're within 10% of each other. If not, it's toast but still has a resale value as spares.

Originally Posted by swesandy

Is it worth the cost of repair and would i see a return getting it retubed?

Maybe, but see what scrubbing with TFR (Traffic Film Remover-get it from a commercial vehicle spares place) and a NON-STICK pan scourer does (use a green one and it'll scratch it). It'll take a while but the tubes will look pretty good after. WEAR GLOVES (Dire warning from one who tried it without!)while using it, even the 'low caustic' is quite caustic.
Alternatives are MEK (very nasty), Toluene(as nasty) or Fairy Power spray (not quite as good-takes more effort, but isn't as nasty)

It's not as far as I know too bad cost wise to retube a hardnose boat-it's less complicated and doesn't use as much material. Quotes will vary a lot depending on how many grab handles/lifelines/rubbing strakes etc.

That is of course assumng there's no hull issues.

[Ian M]

How good a 'mate' is he? Has he discovered a deal breaker?
I would suggest be suspicious, check out the hull, check out the trailer (corroded brake shoes - not really a reason to remove the shoes, they are easy and cheap to replace!) - it is illegal to tow a RIB of this weight without brakes, even if only for 5 miles.
As Nos says, get a compression test done, and tubes that hold air for a week are useable, and a fix may not take much effort/cost.
If all this is OK, bite his hand off A good working RIB for £1600 but to get it looking good is going to require some TLC, do you have plenty of spare elbow grease?
Second thoughts, probably not worth it, do the checks, let me know what you find, and leave it

[swesandy]

Hi All

Just an update, after a complete nut and bolt engine rebuild, new tubes and whole lot more. A few pictures for interest.











Unfortunately Work commitments mean I must now sell it, if anybody is interested link below


Osprey Eagle RIB Boat AND Suzuki DT115 Outboard | eBay

[Chris]

Nice Job !

[swesandy]

Thanks Chris